International
Attack on Rushdie sparks surge in interest in author’s works
AFP
That list, which shows books whose sales have increased the most, had another Rushdie opus, “Midnight’s Children,” teetering between fourth and fifth place.
Bookstores reported a flurry of interest in the Indian-born author, some from readers too young to remember the original fury he prompted across much of the Muslim world.
The knife attack on Rushdie, 75, which drew international condemnation, took place Friday as the author was about to speak at a literary event in the small town of Chautauqua, in western New York state.
Police and witnesses said 24-year-old Hadi Matar of Fairfield, New Jersey, was wrestled to the ground as he continued his attack, which left Rushdie in serious condition. Authorities have yet to describe Matar’s background or say what might have motivated him.
At the sprawling Strand Bookstore, New York’s biggest and probably most famous book emporium, the attack brought a spike in interest, and in sales of new and used Rushdie volumes.
“We definitely had people coming in looking for anything that he’s written,” said floor manager Katie Silvernail.
“Some of our younger employees had never heard of him. So it was interesting yesterday to have conversations… with our younger staff about who he was and what his impact was on the literary world.”
She added: “Honestly, I feel like people just came here yesterday because they wanted to talk about how they felt about what happened.”
On Twitter, some users urged people to buy Rushdie’s books in a show of solidarity.
“The Satanic Verses” tells the surrealistic tale of two Indian actors whose hijacked plane explodes over the English Channel. They somehow make it safely to an English beach, one of them now in the form of an archangel, the other as the devil.
Explosively, Rushdie gave prostitutes in the story the names of the prophet Mohammed’s wives.
He also created the character of a prophet named Mahound who, under Lucifer’s influence, seems to say that one can pray to gods other than Allah — before realizing his error.
Rushdie, who holds both British and American citizenship, remained hospitalized Saturday in serious condition following hours of surgery.
International
Uribe requests freedom amid appeal of historic bribery conviction
Former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe on Monday requested that the Supreme Court restore his freedom while he appeals the historic 12-year house arrest sentence he received for bribery and procedural fraud.
Uribe, the most prominent figure of Colombia’s right wing, was convicted last week by a lower court for attempting to bribe paramilitary members into denying his ties to the violent anti-guerrilla squads.
Since Friday, the 73-year-old has been under house arrest at his residence in Rionegro, about 30 km from Medellín. The judge justified the measure by citing a risk of flight.
However, Uribe’s defense team rejected that argument and formally petitioned the court to immediately lift the detention order, claiming it lacks legal basis.
Uribe, a dominant force in Colombian politics for decades, is now the first former president in the country’s history to be convicted and placed under arrest, found guilty of witness tampering and obstruction of justice to prevent links to paramilitary groups.
He has repeatedly denounced the trial as politically motivated, blaming pressure from the leftist government currently in power.
His political party, Centro Democrático, has called for nationwide protests on August 7 in support of Uribe, who remains popular for his hardline stance against guerrilla groups.
Uribe has until August 13 to submit his written appeal. The case will then move to the Bogotá High Court, which has until October 16 to uphold, overturn, or dismiss the sentence. If the deadline passes without a decision, the case will be archived.
International
U.S. Embassy staff restricted as gunfire erupts near compound in Port-au-Prince
The poorest country in Latin America and the Caribbean is currently engulfed in a deep political crisis and a wave of violence driven by armed groups — a situation that an international security mission led by Kenya is attempting to stabilize.
Due to the worsening security conditions, the U.S. government has suspended all official movements of embassy personnel outside the compound in Port-au-Prince, the U.S. State Department announced Monday in a security alert posted on social media platform X.
“There are intense gunfights in the Tabarre neighborhood, near the U.S. Embassy,” the alert reads, urging the public to avoid the area.
Tabarre is a municipality located near Port-au-Prince International Airport, northeast of the Haitian capital.
According to a July report by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, at least 3,141 people were killed in Haitibetween January 1 and June 30 of this year.
International
Israel says 136 food aid boxes airdropped into Gaza by six nations
The Israeli military announced on Sunday that 136 boxes of food aid were airdropped into Gaza by the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Egypt, Germany, and Belgium.
“In recent hours, six countries conducted air drops of 136 aid packages containing food for residents in the southern and northern Gaza Strip,” read the statement, which added that the operation was coordinated by COGAT, the Israeli defense body overseeing civil affairs in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The Israeli military emphasized that they will “continue working to improve the humanitarian response alongside the international community” and reiterated their stance to “refute false allegations of deliberate famine in Gaza.”
The announcement comes as UN agencies warn Gaza faces an imminent risk of famine. More than one in three residents go days without eating, and other nutrition indicators have dropped to their worst levels since the conflict began.
The agencies also noted the difficulty of “collecting reliable data in current conditions, as Gaza’s health systems —already devastated by nearly three years of conflict— are collapsing.”
Meanwhile, Gaza’s Hamas-run Health Ministry reported on Sunday that hospitals in the enclave recorded six deaths from hunger and malnutrition on Saturday, all of them adults.
Uribe requests freedom amid appeal of historic bribery conviction
U.S. Embassy staff restricted as gunfire erupts near compound in Port-au-Prince
Israel says 136 food aid boxes airdropped into Gaza by six nations
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Uribe requests freedom amid appeal of historic bribery conviction